A Midwinter's Night Dream: The Return
by Sacredheart
Summary: Sarah Williams is now a sophomore in college with no memory of the Labyrinth...or of Jareth. But who is this strange man she meets one snowy day, a man with mismatched eyes who fills her with both fear...and longing?
1. This Provincial Life

Author's Note: This story was posted on in 2003 under the name 'A Midwinter's Night Dream'. I have updated all of the chapters, revised- and basically resurrected the story. I am back ladies and gents- watch for updates soon! ;).

P.S.: Constructive criticism and suggestions are ALWAYS appreciated! There are some great writers, readers and editors out there- if you see anything that needs tweaking, or maybe even a massive overhaul, let me know- I'm always open to suggestions!

-Sacredheart

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Chapter I: This Provincial Life

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"Everybody seems to think I'm lazy  
I don't mind, I think they're crazy  
Running everywhere at such a speed  
Till they find, there's no need

Please don't spoil my day  
I'm miles away  
And after all  
I'm only sleeping"

- The Vines, I'm Only Sleeping

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Sarah shivered as she walker out of the clear glass doors of the auditorium with the rest of the student body. A blast of frigid, snowy air took her full in the face and she promptly slipped a woolen cap on her head and huddled down in her coat- after living her whole life in West Virginia Sarah still hadn't gotten used to the cold that came every winter. As bitter as it was, Sarah still took a deep, cleansing breath as she left her last final of the semester behind, and focused on simply walking in a safe manner on the ice-crusted sidewalk.

_Christmas holidays only come once per year you wimp, _she thought to herself sardonically. _Stop groaning about the cold and be happy you at least _get _a break. _

Slipping a few times- and narrowly missing a fall - Sarah reached her car in relative safety. She fumbled with her keys and after a few unsuccessful yanks on her frozen-shut door Sarah hopped onto the freezing cold upholstery of her faithful Honda. She turned the key and the engine sputtered, chugged and finally roared to life. Grinning, Sarah and leaned back a moment against the seat. Well, it may be cold, but at least this worked out.

After she finished scraping the inch of ice of her car, Sarah gingerly edged her way out of the parking lot and onto the busy street. She hadn't lived in Ashvale very long, but she thought it was a pretty place nonetheless. After graduating from high school she had been accepted into a university, which was only a few hours' drive farther north of her hometown. She had moved into a small apartment within a reasonable distance from the university, and was generally happy with the move.

The only thing she really missed from home was her little brother Toby. She hardly ever got to see him anymore besides times like these- holidays, when she could get time off from college to go and visit home. Sarah smiled a little at the thought, and wondered, with him growing so fast what he looked like now. The last time she'd seen him was that past summer for his sixth birthday during a break from classes. When she called home she was usually greeted by an elated "Hi Sarah!!" from him. For a brother and a sister with such an age gap between them, they were quite close.

Sarah sighed a bit and ran a decisive hand through her wealth of dark hair. She knew she should start packing for her trip down to her parent's house. But she found herself meandering around town, and decided that her packing could wait for a little bit longer. Sarah was going to do the same thing she did every holiday-, go and spend Christmas with her family.

This year Sarah's grandmother, Tessa, would be coming down to spend the holidays with them. Tessa had only been recently widowed, and the family had been devastated when Bob had passed away from his long battle with cancer. Tessa had dealt with his passing with the strong, calm grace that she had always exuded. Sarah and Tessa had always shared a special bond, and Sarah had been there as much as she could for her grandmother. The two both shared a strong imagination and a dreamer's mentality, and Sarah knew that it was from her that she got most of her dreamer's ways. Sarah always looked foreword to her grandmother's gifts at Christmas or birthdays, because Gramma Tess always knew just what to get her- be it a new book from her favorite author, or like one wonderful Christmas, tickets for the two of them to a showing of Phantom of the Opera.

As she drove down Main Street a glowing green and white sign pulled her out of her reverie, and beckoned to her like it had an actual voice. She made her decision quite quickly and pulled into the little parking lot and easily found a place to park. Before she locked the car she reached back into the backseat and grabbed her shoulder bag with the intention of doing some homework while she was here. With still numb hands she rushed across the street and into the welcoming, warm glow of the local Starbucks.

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"Sarah!" A cheerful voice hailed as soon as Sarah walked through the door. She grinned broadly and looked to her friend, who was waving franticly from behind the counter, the other hand holding a frothing cup of coffee under one of the odd apparatuses that seem to occupy every Starbucks.

"Hey, Felic! How goes it in the coffee world?" Sarah asked as she poked her head between one of the humming machines.

Felicity, a lively, strong headed girl with a shock of curly red hair and flashing blue eyes turned to Sarah and grinned. " Eh, as well as expected- except the heating thingy attacked me again", she said, holding up a burned index finger -which was wrapped neatly in a Sponge Bob Band-Aid- with a dramatic flair.

Laughing Sarah grabbed her hand and pretended to slobber all over it with kisses before Felicity, laughing, tugged it away.

"Hey! You're going to get me fired for contaminating the coffee!"

"I know you wouldn't mind, Sarah said sweetly, and dropped her voice to a confidential whisper. ..."Since we all know June hates you for whatever reason she's convinced herself with!"

Felicia chuckled and added a large dollop of whipped cream to the drink.

"Grande white chocolate mocha!" She bellowed, and set the drink on the side counter, were it was quickly whisked away by the waiting customer. Felicity turned back to Sarah and winked.

"Yeah, she hates me, as always. I swear that woman is out to get me fired. If she ever succeeds we all know that would just make her dour, catty day for sure."

Sarah nodded and shot her a look to be quiet as June came out from the kitchen area, and pinned Sarah with a sharp don't-distract-my-workers look. Sarah fought to repress grin. "Well Felic, she said, carrying her voice to make sure June heard."You look busy so I'll let you be for a while. I'll just sit over here at a table and mind my own business, k?"

"My break is in about fifteen minutes," Felicity murmured demurely.

"Gotcha", Sarah replied as she moved away into the dimly lit area of the seating lounge and sat down at a table. Felicity was really Sarah's only close friend, and the two girls could easily pass as sisters. The two had met in Sarah's last year in high school, and Felicity shared Sarah's love of fantasy and drama. Both of them by stroke of luck been accepted into the same college, and were both majoring in Drama.

Sarah reached down into her bag and pulled out her worn copy of _A Midsummer's Night Dream._ The theatre department was putting on the show, and even though Sarah had opted out for one of the main roles, she had decided to work backstage in tech instead. Her teacher had been greatly disappointed, but had ceded to Sarah's will and had given the role to the understudy- Felicity. Sarah had made the decision for a variety of reasons, but the main had been that Felicity always seemed to come in right below Sarah in the plays and such that they both auditioned for. Although Felicity was always a good sport, no matter how much she tried to hide it Sarah always knew that she was disappointed, so Sarah had decided to let her have this role. She knew that it was really important to her friend, and meant the world to her. Even though Sarah wasn't playing an active role in this play, there highlights and notes were all over the margins in Sarah's naturally graceful scrawl. Even though she had worked in tech during high school, she never thought it could be so complicated. There was so much to learn, and Sarah was really happy to have the opportunity to work.

"Grande cinnamon vanilla latte with whipped cream and caramel!"

Sarah smiled a little and looked up as Felicity set the drink on the sideboard and looked pointedly at her. That was Sarah's favorite coffee of all time and her friend knew it. Other people cringed at that sugar-loaded mixture, but to Sarah it was pure heaven. She walked over and grabbed the drink, mouthing a silent "thank you" to Felicity, who pretended she didn't even see her being under the watchful gaze of her supervisor, though a corner of her mouth curled up in a smile.

Sarah took her coffee to the condiments counter to add the finishing touches. She shied away from the door as it opened right beside her and blew a blast of frigid, snowy air onto her. This movement caused her to slop a bit of the coffee over the side of the cup, and all over her hand. Sarah hissed slightly and jerked her hand away from the cup. As she reached for the napkins a long slender hand was already there before her. A smoothly accented male voice spoke as she drew her hand away.

"Here, I'm terribly sorry. Let me help."

Sarah looked up with a murmur of objection, but the words died on her lips as she looked into a pair of very unique eyes.

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	2. Mystery

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Chapter 2: Mystery

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"Living is easy with eyes closed  
Misunderstanding all you see…"  
–Strawberry Fields Forever, Ben Harper

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Sarah swallowed and tried to regain her composure as she slowly straightened up, her eyes still locked with his. He looked down at her, concern written on his aquiline features. He repeated his question.

"I'm sorry," Sarah croaked, trying to gain her composure. "What was that?"

"I asked if you were alright, you seem a little pale."

"Oh..." she laughed weakly. Sorry. Yeah, it was just surprise, really. It wasn't that hot."

He gazed at her a moment longer- Sarah got a good look at his eyes- one green and one brown. He must have noticed her staring- he nodded then looked down quickly to the counter and threw away the rest of the sodden napkins.

At that moment when their eyes met, Sarah was shaken by the most overwhelming sense of familiarity with this man. But she was sure that she'd remember if she'd seen a face like _that _walking around town. But then again he was different- _a foreigner…? _Sarah mused silently, her brain frantically trying to place the man.

She took a deep breath and looked at him again with eyes narrowed, trying to place him. The slate gray light of the winter sky filtering through the windows did nothing to dampen his handsome looks. Sarah wouldn't deny that he was, undoubtedly, very good looking. The light in fact it seemed to enhance him. This man was reasonably tall and finely built, though not to the point of frailty. His fine blonde hair was tied back at the nape of his neck firmly, the ends brushing over the shoulders of his thick wool turtleneck sweater. He wore simple blue jeans and heavy work boots, crusted with melting snow. He had the features of someone right out of a poetry book, and the dress of someone right off the job. But he exuded an aura of simple elegance, unlike most of the men Sarah had the misfortune to meet in the town.

Sarah realized her hands were shaking, and that she'd picked up the half empty cup to steady them. It didn't help. She quickly set the cup down as if it'd burned her.

"Um... I think I need to go wash my hands... ", she managed, and quickly shot off towards the bathroom, leaving the man staring after her.

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Sarah turned on the tap and placed both hands on either side of the sink to steady her, and stared down at the swirling water. What was it about that guy? She'd never acted so stupid in her life! She'd made a complete fool out of herself out there. But she'd felt so unsure all of a sudden, like she was a teenager again…

Suddenly, Felicia burst through the door and set her sights on her friend.

"What in the hell happened out there?" she groaned. "You had him in your pocket!"

Her tone turned quickly from admonishing to worry as she caught sight of Sarah's face.

"Whoa. Syrup, are you alright?" Felicity said, using Sarah's nickname as she walked over and put an arm around Sarah's shoulders.

"Yeah... yeah Felic, I'm fine."

"What happened?" she repeated gently. "He's still out there waiting for you, you know."

Sarah finally began to wash her hands hurriedly, not looking up. "Oh- nothing Felicity. You know me- Men are like a foreign species."

Felicity dropped her arm from her shoulder and looked pleadingly at her friend.

"Yeah, and it looks like this one wants to change all that."

She paused, staring at Sarah pleadingly as a long silence ensued- and then finally her composure broke.

"Oh Sarah come on! Please? If I didn't have to get back to work I'd drag you out there myself and make you talk to him. I've done it before! June isn't even letting me take my break; we're so busy all of a sudden."

Felicity stared at Sarah a moment longer, and then threw up her hands in a gesture of hopelessness, mumbling irritably of her friend's blindness to all that was male. She waved offhandedly as she disappeared out the door.

Sarah rolled her eyes and looked up at her reflection in the mirror. _Get a grip, Sarah._ _So what- you think you've seen the guy before. It's a college town, and a small one at that, you probably have,_ _for goodness sakes. _

The only thing that particular explanation _didn't _give a nice, assured answer to was the haunting snippet of music that had come into her mind out of nowhere when she looked into his eyes. And the voice. She sighed and stared long and hard at herself in the mirror. _What now?_

_But I'll be there for you... as the world falls down._

_----------------------------------------------------_

Sarah walked out of the restroom, looking more composed- or so she hoped- than when she went in. Felicia wanted her to talk to the guy, then fine. She would.

It's not like Sarah had _never_ dated. She did. But as time went by she became so involved in the theatre that she had nearly stopped going out all together. And Felic, being the kind of person who doesn't let a good opportunity slip by was hell bent to change all that.

The man had gotten tired of waiting for her and left, Sarah supposed, since she didn't see him anywhere in the milling crowd. It was a wonder how fast Felicia and the two other people back there could run those machines. The lull of yelled orders caused a nice humming backdrop to Sarah's thoughts as she walked over to the table she'd been sitting at and gathered all her things.

_It's a wonder someone hasn't run off with my wallet or something_, Sarah thought. But with Felicia looking out for her she wasn't surprised. She slipped the bag on her shoulder and stood up to say bye to her friend, and came face to face with the man again. Sarah jumped.

He smiled and held out one of the two cups in his hands.

"A... cinnamon vanilla latte with whipped cream and caramel is what you had, I believe? That's quite an interesting mixture."

Sarah was quite surprised. "Oh you didn't have to get me another..."

As much as she tried to decline gracefully, he insisted and practically placed it in her hands. Sarah looked up to him with another polite objection on her lips when she looked beyond the man's shoulder and caught Felicia watching them intently from behind the counter. Her friend promptly gave her a look that said she would personally chew her out in front of him if she didn't accept it. With a sigh she looked back to him again.

"Thank you very much. You really didn't have to..." she started.

He raised a hand and interrupted.

"But yet I did. And what's done is done, so you'll just have to accept it, right?"

He smiled slowly, gazing down at her.

Sarah couldn't help but smile back. "Right, I guess. Thank you again..."

He waved a hand. "It was nothing. Your friend told me what you liked."

Sarah looked over to Felicia again, who was grinning and giving a very enthusiastic- and very obvious- thumbs up. The man turned a bit and saw her. Felicia went wide eyed and got back to work, pretending she hadn't done a thing. Sarah closed her eyes and sighed, a burning blush rising unbidden on her cheeks. _Oh my God…I'll get her back for this…_Sarah swore silently.

The man chuckled as he saw the blush that rose in her cheeks, and Sarah immediately wished the floor would swallow her up right then. A steady buzzing was heard, and the man reached for the pager attached to his belt and checked a number that was flashing on the pager's illuminated screen.

"Ah..." he mumbled irritably under his breath, and looked back to Sarah. He smiled once again and held out a long slender hand.

"Well, it looks like I have to be getting on my way. I enjoyed talking with you…and my name is Adrian Rousse, by the way."

"Nice to meet you Adrian", Sarah responded, and made to clasp his hand.

"I'm Sarah Williams…"

To her surprise he raised it, and just lightly touched his lips to the top of her hand. Sarah suddenly felt a shock run through her body, and an overwhelming sense of ungrounded fear that made her muscles contract sharply. She was stunned.

"W-well, it was great talking to you, Adrian, and- thanks for the coffee." She finished weakly.

Adrian regarded her for a moment longer.

"You know", he began, I feel like I've met you before- have I?"

Sarah looked up sharply. It had been on the edge of her tongue to say something very much along the same lines as his last question, but she bit it back sharply. She was still jumpy, her stomach fluttering nervously.

"No, I don't think so. You must be thinking of someone else."

He nodded silently, and opened his mouth to make a comment when his pager insistently buzzed again. He sighed and turned it off without looking at it.

"I've got to be going now, Sarah."

For some odd reason, her name sounded exciting and different when he spoke it with his smooth accent. She liked that at least, putting any irrational fears aside.

"I hope to see you around again", Adrian said, as he began backing slowly towards the door.

"And I wouldn't mind at all buying you something to go along with that coffee sometime. Dinner, perhaps."

Sarah blushed lightly in spite of herself and smiled. Adrian smiled back slowly and nodded to her. He then turned his back and headed out the door in a swirl of icy air. Sarah frowned a bit and stared after him a moment. _Oh you idiot, _she moaned inwardly_. You should have said something- a YES maybe? _Sarah mired in these miserable thoughts a moment until she heard soft laughter behind her. She grinned and slowly turned around, knowing just what she'd see.

Felicia and the two other worker-friends of hers were leaning against the counter, chins resting on their hands and staring at her. Felic looked absolutely delighted.

She grinned slowly at Sarah.

"So," Felicity began as sweet as can be, her eyes positively dancing. "So- should I begin with, 'I told you so', or something else right along those lines?"

Sarah stuck her tongue out at Felicity and grabbed her coat from the back of the chair.

"Yeah, well I'm going home now Felic. I hope you and your buddies enjoyed my little show."

"Oh, we did. We did. I'll drop by later to talk to you about Adri- I mean, to help you pack for your trip, ok?"

Sarah laughed and pushed open the door.

"Yeah whatever, you nut. I'll see you later."

She stepped out into the dusky twilight and made her way through the freshly fallen powder to her car.

And far above the city a white owl flew.

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The throb of power hit the little dwarf even before he had placed a hand upon the richly carved doors to the throne room. He licked his lips, and nervously straightened his waistcoat. _She_ was in there- and she knew he was here. He looked up, and into the eyes if the massive brass gargoyle upon the door, holding a large cold metal ring clenched in its teeth. He took a breath and lifted the brass knocker upon the door, and let it fall. He winced as the sound reverberated through the throne room- and he felt her presence center upon him.

"Enter, Darvon."

The dwarf put a hand upon the door, and it opened on its own. Waiting longer would only risk her particular displeasure- and his news would do enough of that. Keeping his eyes carefully downcast, Darvon quickly made his way down the length of the Hall, and bowed down before her throne.

"What have you to report, dwarf?"

"My Lady Queen Tarsis, the dwarf began, his voice sounding pitifully small, "I have news- of the outcast."

There was silence a moment.

"Speak", the queen said after a time.

"He still lives, my queen, in the human world. He did not perish in the transition as we had hoped- Jared still survives though nearly all his powers were stripped from him. He-

"And the memory spells?" The queen interrupted sharply

Darvon's eyes darted nervously. "They-he remembers nothing my queen- your sorcerers in the High Court made sure of that. "But"- his breath came a little faster now. "But… he has met the girl."

The wave of power hit him with a sickening punch.

"What?" she spat, half rising off the throne. "How is this possible?"

She could destroy him at any moment- turn him to ash like so many others. Darvon swallowed, his body beginning to tremble. "I do not know, my queen."

He looked up, meeting hesitantly the gaze of his queen. Her violet eyes glowed with rage, a violent outpouring of her wrath caused the wind to rise within the room- curtains were whipped about, priceless ancient tapestries town to ribbons. This power centered upon Darvon's small body and shoved him back along the carpets, the solid wood door rushed quickly up to meet him, and he crashed against it with a sickening thud. Tarsis pinned him there with her burning, unnatural eyes.

"Find her, Darvon. Find this girl- this Sarah, and destroy her. Both the girl and Jareth will never step foot in this world again. See to it Darvon, or your life is forfeit.

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	3. Let It Snow

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Chapter 3: Let It Snow

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"There was a boy

A very strange enchanted boy

They say he wandered very far, very far

…a little shy and sad of eye

But very wise was he."

-Nature Boy, David Bowie

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Adrian spun and soared as high as he could, riding an updraft into the gathering dark. He knew that Henry needed him, but he figured he could take just a little time to be alone with his thoughts. He preferred to be alone with his thoughts, especially tonight.

He thought back over the time that he had spent in Woodhollow since he'd been found unconscious upon the cold stones of the bridge in the park. It was amazing that it'd been already six years since the Henry had found him, and brought him into his home for a time.

_"You were colder n' ice when I first saw ye lying there. Thoughtch're dead as a post too, 'til I touched ye and found you still had a little life left in you_." The old man spoke in his peculiar drawl_. "I'd just been walking along in the park at around dusk, minding me own business", _Henry said, his old knobbed hands pulling on his long beard in a thoughtful manner. He looked at Adrian through the thick haze of smoke issuing from his pipe.

_"It started getting dark so I turned meself around and started heading back for the shop. Once I got to the bridge I nearly tripped over ye, sprawled out over the stones like that. An' surrounded by those feathers ya were! I never seen nothin' like it. _

Adrian had been watching him intently.

_"But you took me home, _Adrian replied_. I could have been dangerous, for all you knew- why did you do it?" _

Henry scoffed at that.

_"Dangerous! Ye 're weak as a newborn kitten them first few days. And besides, I have ways of knowing wither a person be good or bad", he said, tapping his pipe against the arm of his chair and looking merrily at Adrian from under his bristly eyebrows. Of what were his ways he would say no more._

Adrian _had _indeed been very weak those first dark days. In fact, (though the old man wouldn't say) he'd been waltzing upon a frayed thread between life and death. Adrian knew this somehow. There were dreams, also which plagued his feverish sleep. He could only remember words and voices, nothing more.

Words and voices that kept weaving themselves into his fitful dreams.

"_You have no power over me."_

Repeatedly he heard this phrase in his sleep until he felt that he'd go mad from the repetition of it. And laughter of an overwhelmingly powerful presence he felt in these dreams at times. Sometimes he fancied he felt a cool, slim hand touching his face- and that voice-

_"Forever dreaming, my prince. All is lost to you now."_

That shockingly feminine, but cruel voice sent coldness deep into his marrow. She laughed gleefully at most times, and somehow he knew that she was laughing at him. Mocking him...

After a week in this strange comatose state Adrian had awakened with only a quickly fading memory of these dreams, and not a memory of himself- only his name. Adrian Rousse. He was tortured by this emptiness of memories. He _knew_ there had to be something that could remind him of his past. And he was certainly not normal.

It was no small wonder Henry found him surrounded by white, downy feathers. It took Adrian by surprise to learn that something else had remained of his past besides his name- the ability to change into the form of a white barn owl at will. Adrian knew then he was not an ordinary human- in fact, that made him wonder if he was indeed human at all. At first, the mental concentration for the transformation drained him immensely. He'd nearly slid back into the clutches of his strange, dream-like sickness again. It took him nearly a year, but the process had become less and less stressful until he could slide into the shape at will.

Swooping down into a darkened alley Adrian landed, and assumed his human shape again. Although he loved the freedom which flight afforded him, Adrian enjoyed his human shape much more. It was so much more natural to him than the owl- and he did not want to raise the curiosity of the townsfolk at to why an owl was flying around during the day. He shoved his hands loosely into the pockets of his coat as he emerged from the alley and began walking down the sidewalk towards the store. Henry owned a small clock and watch repair shop- nothing special, but over the years Henry had developed a clientele, and managed to make a modest living over the years.

The trip between Ashvale and Woodhollow was always a long one when Adrian had first begun exploring the depth of this power. Nevertheless, he found that as his comfort and trust in this power grew, so did his speed. He was nary a white blur in the night sky when he wanted to be, as he had been this night.

His mind finally hit the thing it had been dancing around all this time.

_Sarah_.

The girl mystified Adrian, to say the least. From the moment he walked through that door and she looked up at him, he'd known that there was something different about her- and a certain familiarity. She didn't shy away from him, as all other seemed to do. He felt a welcoming, warm sensation coming from her that other women seemed to lack. Others would rest their eyes on his mismatched gaze then keep their distance; like they sensed his power and were repelled by it. She was something entirely different, and it intrigued him.

He concluded a long time ago that it was indeed magic. Somehow, some way he had this power within him. He felt that it had been with him even before he woke up in this strange little town. It was something that he never worried about, and finally grew to accept. The magic was a part of him and Adrian welcomed it. He also felt the magic was a part of her too- somehow.

Adrian looked up at the stars that carpeted the sky and sighed. After a moment he shook his head and walked on, a lonely figure on the abandoned sidewalk. She was peculiar, this Sarah.

She was special.

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"Damn this... gah!"

Felicia grunted with effort, trying to gain those last few inches of zipper which would pronounce Sarah's bag closed. "Ug... Sarah, try sitting on it."

Sarah let go of the bulging sides and sat down quickly on the bag. The zipper hungrily devoured the last scant inches with a satisfying jump. Both women grinned and collapsed on Sarah's bed. There was silence for a while.

"Hey Sarah?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you have so much crap?"

"Shut up, Felic."

Felicia chuckled and rolled over into Sarah's covers as her friend got up and shuffled across the little apartment and into the small kitchen. She was jealous of Sarah for her acting ability, but certainly not her apartment. The living quarters were a bit cramped for even two people. However, Sarah had made the best of it, Felic considered as she looked around at the meager furniture covered in bright, cheerful cloth and random nick knacks. Various playbills littered the walls of the place, some featuring Sarah right on front.

_Just like her mother, _Felicia thought quietly. _Bound for stardom. _

Sarah emerged from the kitchen a few minutes later with a huge bowl of popcorn and plucked down onto the bed again and set the bowl between them.

"So, what is wrong with this Adrian guy? I've never seen you act like that before."

Sarah sighed and looked at Felicia.

"Honestly, I don't know what's the matter. He seemed to be a sweet man and all… But when he looked at me- It was as if we'd met before." Sarah held up her hand to stop her as Felicia opened her mouth to add on to that.

"I don't want to hear anything about destiny or fates or any of that rubbish. You know it's not true as well as I."

Although Sarah made this comment with much conviction in her voice, her green eyes still slid away from Felicia for just a moment. Felicia frowned. Sarah never even noticed as she continued, her eyes locked on the bedspread.

"Besides, we probably have seen each other before, walking around town or somewhere like that." Sarah glanced at Felicia, who looked unconvinced. "I'm sure you saw his eyes, Felic…how could I miss those?"

Her friend just stared.

Sarah finally stopped mid sentence, looked at her and sighed.

"Alright. You might think I'm crazy, but I'll tell you. I have these dreams..."

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Early the next morning it was bitterly cold, and snow was falling outside Sarah's window in a light steady sheet. Sarah was glad that Felicia had left when she did last night. The snow wasn't too bad, but would make for some cautious driving. She shuffled over and peeped out the window one last time as she was pulling a heavy coat over the dark purple cable knit sweater she wore, her normally bright green eyes pale and tired. After wrapping a black scarf loosely around her neck she grabbed her heavy luggage. With a final glance around to make sure everything was in order, and quickly walked out dragging her bag and locked the door behind her.

Damn it all if talking about those dreams to Felicia hadn't brought a fresh wave of them to her mind. She woke up feeling like she hadn't gone to sleep at all. Of course she couldn't remember anything about what she dreamed- they fled her mind as soon as she woke. They did that sometimes.. she would go weeks or months without dreaming like this, then the next wave would hit and the cycle would start all over again.

Trying not to slip on the snow covered steps Sarah made her way to the car and chucked her bag into the backseat. It looked like driving wouldn't be that bad, which was a big relief to Sarah. With visible effort she pushed the fatigued worry of the dreams from her mind and focused on the joy of going home. The weather seemed to be trying to help. The previous night the news had been talking about huge snowstorms in the area. Apparently, as she guessed they were pretty much wrong. Already the snow was beginning to taper off until it totally stopped by the time Sarah pulled onto the highway and started her long trip back home.

Although the area Sarah traveled through had a few towns, most of it was open country. Covered in the thick white blanket of snow, Fields looked like a wonderland, the occasional horse or other farm animal romped in charming contrast to the white, invigorated by the cold. Smiling softly, Sarah relaxed and began to enjoy the drive. The testy road conditions she had been expecting weren't nearly as bad, and there were only a few stretches of black, slick ice which she had to watch out for. Besides that, the trip was going smoothly.

As she approached Woodhollow the scenery around her became increasingly familiar. She passed silently through a stretch of pine woods, which cast the area into hazy shadow. Huge drifts of powdery snow were piled up on either side of the road, and she could easily see animal tracks leading up and over their sides. There was hardly anyone else on the road today, which made for easy traveling for her. The sooner she could get home, the sooner she could see Toby, Gramma Tessa and her dad. And Karen... though she didn't look foreword to that any time she visited.

Karen and she had 'buried the hatchet' so to speak, gradually over the years. It was still a relief to Sarah to be able to move out and start college when she was nineteen. Even though things had been relatively civil; and still were in the household when Sarah came to visit, Karen never connected with her. She never understood why Sarah was pursuing theatre just like her mother, which she considered 'a nowhere job', though she never would say it to her. Sarah could see it in her ice blue eyes however, whenever her father would make a comment or ask how her studies were going. She wished sometimes that her dad had never gotten married again... but he was happy, and that was all that mattered.

Absorbed in her thoughts as she was, Sarah never saw the huge deer which trotted out of the snowy haze and onto the road in front of her. His magnificently antlered head jerked towards her, steam billowing from his nostrils as he snorted, frozen to the spot. Sarah gasped and roughly came out of her dreamy reverie when this surreal vision finally snapped her out of her thoughts like a slap. Without thinking, she sharply dragged the wheel to the right just as the deer sprang to life and darted in that same direction. She braced herself for the impact, regretting her decision. The deer hit her car with a jarring thud, jerking her roughly against her seatbelt. The deer was fortunate, and the car merely clipped the creature lightly on the back legs. He fortunately recovered, and crashed off into the woods.

Sarah was not to get off so lucky. As she clipped the deer she kept sliding, her car careening wildly as she fought to regain control.

_Please God- don't flip... don't flip... _she thought through gritted teeth as she wrestled with the spinning car. Her efforts were in vain, she realized as she saw the huge snowdrift lining the right side of the wide road looming in the passenger window. She made a strangled sound of disbelief and held onto the steering wheel with an iron grip as the right side of her car plowed into the drift. Sarah was slammed into the driver's side door, stars exploding into her vision as her head cracked sharply against the window. Her car careened drunkenly, spinning once more and slamming its driver's side deep into the drift. Sarah felt something in her left elbow give with a pop as she was crushed against the steering wheel and door.

Blinking slowly Sarah tried to hold on to consciousness. She gradually registered that the side of her head was wet and warm. Blood began to run down her neck, and dull pain was slowly blooming in her left elbow and traveling up her arm. She groaned softly in the silence, the world becoming foggy as darkness closed in.

Sarah slowly registered the sounds of a muffled voice through the darkness. Her eyes opened slowly, registering the dim light around her- the car was buried in snow. Seconds- or maybe even minutes later she heard someone digging through the snow in which her car was half buried, and a rich honeyed accent speaking her name. For some inexplicable reason, she could have wept for joy.

_" Hello? Are you hu- _

_Oh my God… Sarah! Sarah, stay with me… _

_--------------------------------------------------_


End file.
